ManitobaTwo Dakota First Nations are suing Manitoba Hydro, the province and the federal government, alleging the three unjustly enriched themselves through hydro operations on parts of the First Nation’s ancestral land that was never surrendered to the Crown.Dakota Tipi First Nation, Canupawakpa Dakota Nation sue province, feds and Crown corporationOzten Shebahkeget · CBC News · Posted: Oct 30, 2025 6:00 AM EDT | Last Updated: 5 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesCanupawakpa Dakota Nation and Dakota Tipi First Nation are suing Manitoba Hydro, the province and the federal government, alleging they have been ‘unjustly enriched at the expense of the Dakota Nations’ through economic activity on First Nations’ ancestral land. (Trevor Brine/CBC)Two Dakota First Nations in southern Manitoba are suing Manitoba Hydro, the province and the federal government, alleging the three have reaped billions of dollars in profit through hydro operations and other economic activities on parts of the First Nations’ ancestral land that was never surrendered to the Crown.In a lawsuit filed at the Manitoba Court of King’s Bench last week, Canupawakpa Dakota Nation and Dakota Tipi First Nation said they are direct descendents of the Oceti S’Akowin Nation, sometimes referred to as the Sioux — the original inhabitants of large swaths of land across southern Manitoba, reaching into parts of Saskatchewan and Ontario, the lawsuit says.In the suit, the Dakota nations claim they hold rights and title to those lands as per Section 35 of the Constitution, which guarantees Aboriginal and treaty rights.The First Nations say portions of those lands were never ceded, and they allege Manitoba Hydro, the province and the federal government breached constitutional, fiduciary and other duties owed to the First Nations, and have been “unjustly enriched at the expense of the Dakota Nations,” according to the suit.Manitoba Hydro saw $3.9 billion in profits from power exports alone between 2010 and 2019, despite never having consulted the Dakota Nations, according to the suit.Manitoba Hydro has used the lands in question in a way that affects the Dakota Nations and the environment through electricity and gas transmission, distribution and trade, as well as natural resource extraction, the suit alleges.Hydro’s use and occupation of the land, including its finite resources, “deprives the Dakota Nations [of] their ability to fully benefit from the land, economically, socially and spiritually,” according to the lawsuit.The Crown corporation was allowed to conduct economic activities on the lands without consulting the Dakota Nations, therefore excluding their communities and denying them the means to gain economic sustainability, according to the lawsuit.The provincial and federal governments have violated and continue to violate their ongoing duty to consult with the First Nations and failed to obtain informed consent from them, the suit claims.None of the allegations have been proven in court. Statements of defence have not yet been filed.Manitoba Hydro spokesperson Peter Chura and a provincial spokesperson both declined to comment on the lawsuit while the matter is before the courts.A spokesperson for Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada said the department is aware of the lawsuit, which is under review, but declined to comment due to the pending legal proceedings.String of lawsuitsThe Dakota Nations allege they have suffered damages from loss of cultural activities, including stewardship and economic participation in the land, as well as general economic losses stemming from loss of use of the land.They’re seeking a court order that would require Manitoba Hydro to pay them a royalty or transit fee as compensation for past and future usage of their land, as well as general damages for future losses and infringement of their Aboriginal rights.They’re also requesting legal title for the lands to which they claim to hold Aboriginal title, as well as aggravated and punitive damages, the lawsuit says.The statement of claim is among a string of lawsuits that Dakota Tipi First Nation has filed in recent years over ancestral land in southern Manitoba it says was never surrendered to the Crown, including The Forks in Winnipeg and the Southport Aerospace Centre near Portage la Prairie.Dakota people were “strategically excluded” from the treaty-making process and forced to live on reserves that remain smaller in size compared to other First Nations that participated in that process, according to the statement of claim.In 2024, the federal government issued a statement of recognition and an apology to the Dakota and Lakota people for historical mistreatment, but the lawsuit says the government has not made any “meaningful progress” in recognizing the Dakota people’s history and status since then.ABOUT THE AUTHORÖzten Shebahkeget is a member of Northwest Angle 33 First Nation who grew up in Winnipeg’s North End. She has been writing for CBC Manitoba since 2022. She holds an undergraduate degree in English literature and a master’s in writing.Email: ozten.shebahkeget@cbc.ca
Manitoba Hydro, governments have made billions through activity on ancestral Dakota lands: lawsuit
